Moral Stories- Seven Simple Steps To Tackle Any Problem

1.Collect all Information:  information about your problem to come up with a great creative solution. 

2. Be Excited:  Your brain uses a lot of oxygen and does not work well when undernourished. Go do something active and FUN! This will get the blood flowing and when you have fun, your creative juices start flowing. Do something that you haven’t done in long time: dance, roller skate, hike, ride horseback, garden, or ride a bike.

3. Change your Perception: Your perception determines the path to a problem’s solution. Look at your problem from another point of view. What would your problem look like if you were a different person? Imagine…from the viewpoint of a child, a co-worker, your dog, a gambler, a professional athlete, etc. This may sound silly, the point is to shake up your normal routine and help your brain create new pathways of thought.

4. Compare and Contrast: Compare your problem/issue/project to something very different; an object or a concept. Through juxtaposition, you may find combinations you never saw before. Exercise: Grab a blank sheet of paper. Write your problem at the top. Next to it write an unrelated idea such as “shoe”, “the national highway system”, “a candy bar”, “cat litter”….you get the idea! Underneath write every way you can think that these two things are alike. Remember to have fun. This is simply another method of changing your viewpoint as well as generating more ideas.

5. Be Visual: Thinking is very fluid and visual, making use of symbols and pictures instead of words. Give your problem a color…even a smell! What shape is it? What does it feel like to the touch? Exercise: This is best done with a large sheet of paper or a white board. Use a regular piece of paper if that’s all you have. Draw a rectangle in the center and label it with your problem/project. Draw at least 5-6 radiating lines coming out from the box. Label these lines as different aspects of your project. For instance, if the problem is Planning a Wedding on a Tight Budget, some of the radiating lines could be Food, Entertainment, and Wedding Dress. If the problem is Building a Team at work, some of the lines could be Collaboration, Productivity, and Communication. At the end of each line write whatever you think needs to happen with that area. This exercise can help you see the big picture as well as prioritize all the parts of your project.

6. Generate LOTS of ideas: You have gathered information, pumped up your enthusiasm and reviewed your problem from many angles. It’s time to really let loose with ideas. Exercise: Brainstorm! I mean REALLY brainstorm. Don’t just toss out a handful of ideas and call it quits. Put some energy into it. Collaboration is good for this as everyone will get some different ideas. Hand everyone a piece of paper (preferably large, that you can stick to the wall). Set a time limit. Allow enough time to get plenty of ideas but not so much time that you judge the ideas coming out of you (5-10 minutes). Also set a goal for the number ideas, a goal that will force you to work fast. Speed is important as well as reserving any judgment.

7. Give it to your subconscious: Let you subconscious mind have another crack at it. You have plenty of information and ideas. It may be challenging to pick the best course of action. Exercise: Sleep on it! Let your mind have it while you are resting. For this to really work you must do a review just before going to bed and place a notebook by your bed so you can jot down ideas if you wake up during the night and first thing in the morning. Intend that you will have some answers when you wake up. As you wake up, you may have to catch the ideas in the half-awake state. The notebook is right beside you so you won’t lose any good thoughts.

Moral Stories - Greek Torch Relay - Garud of Fire

              Thousands of years ago in Greece, there was a famous race called the Torch Relay. All of the runners received a torch. At the start of the race, they would light their torches, and the runners would take off running with their torches lit.
              The only way you could win the race was to cross the finish line with your torch still lit. Even if you finished first, if your fire went out, you were disqualified. So the whole time they were running, in the forefront of their minds was protecting their fire, keeping it from wind or rain or anything that might put it out. They were constantly checking their torches to make sure that they were still lit.

It’s the same principle in the race of life. If you’re going to finish your course with joy, you have to guard your fire. You can’t let your flame go out. Too many people have lost their passion. They’re still running, but their torch is no longer lit. At one time they were passionate about their dreams, then they had some setbacks. Now they’re running, which is good, but they let their fire go out. They lost their zeal.
           If that’s you, relight your fire. God is not done with you. There is a flame that is still alive inside you.

It’s not enough to just finish. You have to finish your course with your fire still burning.

Moral Stories

Moral Stories - No Onions Country

Once upon a time there lived a young man who was looking to grow in his life. While he was exploring about what business he will take to support his family, he met a very well travelled man.  The man told the young man great tales of his travel and then he talked about a country that had no onions.

“ No onions!” exclaimed the young man. In all his life, he had never heard of such a thing. “ How can anyone enjoy the true pleasure of food without onions?”

Without any further thoughts, he bought onions, filled his cart and set his journey towards this whimsical land of no onions.  After several days he arrived in the onion less country. He made his way to the palace where the guards were fascinated enough by the weird cargo that they allowed him to meet the king.

“ I bring you a great gift from my country :, the young man proudly announced. The plant is native my place but new to yours. It has the unique ability to enhance the flavor of any food. It will be great if I could offer you this magnificent plant which you in turn introduce it to your people”

The emperor was little cautious to let the weird plant at first but he later allowed the young man to prepare some delicacies using the onions.

The young man used all his culinary skills to prepare the feast using the onions. All the empire’s ministers, the nobility and seniors officials were invited to the dinner that night. After the young man did the initial tasting, the feast commenced. Every one in the room started eating the food.

It did’nt take long for the hall to lapse into great noisy fit out f excitement. The smell and the taste of the food was praised by all.

The king thanked the young man profously and demanded the entire batch of onions and paid him its weight in gold.

In his journey back to the homes, the young man met a trader. He shared his magnificent story about the country. For hours that night, the young man recounted the splendour and magnificence he had seen in that far-away land, where gold was worth less than onions. He also told the trader that he learnt that the country did not have garlic. The trader was excited to learn that and thought he could replicate the success of the young man by introducing garlic to the country. “Garlics is infinitely more tasty and aromatic! If they were giving gold for onions there, he could expect diamonds for garlic.” , he thought.

The enterprising trader carried huge bags of garlics took on the journey to the country without garlics, with the riches he was sure to receive jingling merrily in his mind.. Since, the land was recently overjoyed by the introduction of the onions, they were more open to the idea of trying his garlic. The royal guards took the man with the new herbs to the king.

The king asked him to prepare a feast using the garlic. The trader was very excited and made several tasty dishes using garlics. As he had expected the garlic received even more praises than the onions. The Emperor discussed with his ministers for a long time about the reward for their noble guest who introduced them with the garlic. After some discussion, they all agreed that the gold was not enough for such a delicious food. So they decided to reward him with the most precious thing they had to offer. What can be more precious than gold? Onions!

That night the trader returned home with bags full of onions.

Moral of the Storey: There are no shortcuts to success.

Moral Srories - Two Monks and a Woman

A senior monk and a junior monk were traveling together. At one point, they came to a river with a strong current. As the monks were preparing to cross the river, they saw a very young and beautiful woman also attempting to cross. The young woman asked if they could help her cross to the other side.

The two monks glanced at one another because they had taken vows not to touch a woman.

Then, without a word, the older monk picked up the woman, carried her across the river, placed her gently on the other side, and carried on his
journey.

The younger monk couldn’t believe what had just happened. After rejoining his companion, he was speechless, and an hour passed without a word between them.

Two more hours passed, then three, finally the younger monk could contain himself any longer, and blurted out “As monks, we are not permitted a woman, how could you then carry that woman on your shoulders?”

The older monk looked at him and replied, “Brother, I set her down on the other side of the river, why are you still carrying her?”

--

This simple Zen story has a beautiful message about living in the present moment. How often do we carry around past hurts, holding onto resentments when the only person we are really hurting is ourselves.

We all go through times in life when other people say things or behave in a way that is hurtful towards us. We can chose to ruminate over past actions or events, but it will ultimately weigh us down and sap our energy.

Instead we can choose to let go of what doesn’t serve us anymore and concentrate on the present moment. Until we can find a level of peace and happiness in the present circumstances of our lives, we will never be content, because ‘now’ is all we will ever have.

Moral Stories - Echo

A man and his son were going through the forest hills. Suddenly, the boy fell down on the trail and screamed with a pain, “Aah!” Surprisingly, he heard the same voice from the mountain, “Aah!” Curiously, the boy shouted, “Who is this?” But the voice replied the same, “Who is this?” He got angry, and shouted again, “You are stupid!” And again the voice replied the same, “You are stupid!”

Annoyed By this, the boy asked his father, “Father, What is going on? Who is this?” The Father replied, “Son, Pay attention”. The father shouted, “You are very nice”. And the voice responded the same, “You are very nice!” The father again shouted, “Thank you”. And the voice again responded the same, “Thank you!” The son was very surprised but he still could not understand what was happening.

The father explained, “Son, people call it echo, but this is the truth of the life. The life is a reflection of your actions. What you will give to others, you will receive the same in return.”

Moral: What we give to others, life gives us the same in return. Your life is not an accident or a coincidence, but it is the shadow of your actions.

Moral Stories - THE TRIPLE FILTER TEST

THE TRIPLE FILTER TEST

Socrates was Greek philosopher known for his great knowledge and wisdom. One day an acquaintance of his met the wise man and said, “ I just heard something about your friend. Do you want to know about it?”

To which Socrate replied calmly , “Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be good idea to  test importance of what you’re going to say. Let it pass through the triple filter test. The first filter of your information is truth. Are you absolutely sure that whatever you are about to tell me about my firned is true?”

“Well, no,” the man said, “I just heard about it from somewhere”

“All right, so you are unsure about the truthfulness of your statement you are about to make. Now, let’s try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me a good thing?”  said Socrates.

“Umm, No” answered the man softly.

“So, you want to tell me something bad about my friend which you’re not certain it’s true. You failed the first two test but you may still pass the test if you pass the final filter, the filter of usefulness. Is what you want to tell me going to be useful to me?”

“No, not really.” replied the man shamefully.

“Well, if what you want to tell me is neither true, nor good or even useful, why waste your time to tell it to me at all. ” concluded Socrates.

Although there is nothing wrong with talking about other people, it is what we talk about them that really matters. It is so easy to fall into a pattern of unconscious criticism, doubt and misunderstanding while involving oneself in a conversation about a third person. This short story of the great Greek philosopher Socrates could help us in making a better judgment about the information that we consume every day. The triple filter test can act as a very useful tool for blocking all the information that is not important to our lives.

"Speak only when you feel your words are better than your scilence."

Moral Stories - Cockroache and Waiter

A beautiful speech by Sundar Pichai - an IIT-MIT Alumnus:

The cockroach theory for self development
At a restaurant, a cockroach suddenly flew from somewhere and
sat on a lady.
She started screaming out of fear.

With a panic stricken face and trembling voice, she started
jumping, with both her hands desperately trying to get rid of the
cockroach.

Her reaction was contagious, as everyone in her group also got
panicky.

The lady finally managed to push the cockroach away but ...it
landed on another lady in the group.

Now, it was the turn of the other lady in the group to continue
the drama.

The waiter rushed forward to their rescue.

In the relay of throwing, the cockroach next fell upon the waiter.

The waiter stood firm, composed himself and observed the
behavior of the cockroach on his shirt.

When he was confident enough, he grabbed it with his fingers and
threw it out of the restaurant.

Sipping my coffee and watching the amusement, the antenna of
my mind picked up a few thoughts and started wondering, was
the cockroach responsible for their histrionic behavior?

If so, then why was the waiter not disturbed?

He handled it near to perfection, without any chaos.

It is not the cockroach, but the inability of those people to handle
the disturbance caused by the cockroach, that disturbed the
ladies.

I realized that, it is not the shouting of my father or my boss or
my wife that disturbs me, but it's my inability to handle the
disturbances caused by their shouting that disturbs me.

It's not the traffic jams on the road that disturbs me, but my
inability to handle the disturbance caused by the traffic jam that
disturbs me.

More than the problem, it's my reaction to the problem that
creates chaos in my life.

Lessons learnt from the story:

I understood, I should not react in life.

I should always respond.
The women reacted, whereas the waiter responded.

Reactions are always instinctive whereas responses are always
well thought of.

- Sundar Pichai

Moral Stories - Life OF THE PENCIL

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box.
“There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world.
Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be.”
One: “You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in 
someone’s hand.”
Two: “You will experience a painful
sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better  pencil.”
Three: “You will be able to correct  any mistakes you might make.”
Four: “The most important part of you will always be what's inside.”
And
Five: “On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the 
condition, you must continue to write.”
The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.
Now replacing the place of the pencil with you. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best person you can be.
One: “You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in God’s hand. And allow other human beings to access you for the many gifts you possess.”
Two: “You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, by going through various 
problems in life, but you’ll need it to become a stronger person.”
Three: “You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.”
Four: “The most important part of you will always be what’s on the inside.”
And
Five: “On every surface you walk through, you must leave your mark. No matter what the 
situation, you must continue to do your duties.”
Allow this parable on the pencil to encourage you to know that you are a special person and only
you can fulfill the purpose to which you were born to accomplish.

Moral Stories - Old Man and a Dream

Moral Stories - Old Man and a Dream

Long ago lived a young man in Istanbul, Turkey. Because he was poor, he had only a single room, sparsely furnished with a few books and a small cot for a bed. One night the young man had a dream — a vision, really.

In it, he saw himself walking on a street in what he came to realize was the city of Cairo in Egypt, a place he had never been. He could clearly see the name of the street and the houses that lined the road.

In the vision, he walked up to one particular house, noting the address. He entered into a tiled courtyard and then into the main house. An open door drew him to a particular room within the house. In this room sat an old man surrounded by treasures beyond anything the young man had ever imagined.

Diamonds, emeralds, and rubies were piled high in pyramid shapes. Gold and silver bars lined the walls. Exquisite carpets and artifacts from around the world lay at his feet. The young man stared at the treasures and then at the old man in amazement, for in that moment he somehow knew that these treasures belonged to himself. He didn’t know how he knew (it was a vision, after all), but he was certain that all of it was rightfully his.

The young man bolted awake from the dream. So confident was he in its veracity that he set off that very day on the long journey from Istanbul to Cairo in order to claim his treasure. In those days, travel was slow and the young man, being poor, had to work along the way to pay for food and lodging. After several months, he eventually arrived in Cairo. Upon making the inquiries he found the very street he had seen in his dream.

As he set foot upon it, everything seemed completely familiar. The houses were exactly as he had seen them in his vision. And sure enough, the house that in the dream had contained the old man and his treasure was precisely where the young man expected it to be. Knowing his way, he entered into the tiled courtyard and then into the room of treasures where he planned to make his claim.

There sat the old man, but there were no jewels, no gold or silver, no carpets or artifacts. The young man, undeterred by the absence of the treasures recounted his vision to the old man and concluded by saying, “Since everything else in my vision has been accurate, I assume that the riches are hidden here somewhere. Please hand them over to me.”

The old man was silent for some time, looking intently at the young man, his eyes glistening. After a while, he spoke. “It’s strange,” he said. “I, too, had a dream. I dreamed of a young man in Istanbul who looked exactly like you.”

“Yes, go on,” implored the young man, certain that this information would lead to his treasure.

The old man proceeded to describe the street on which the young man lived in Istanbul. He described the young man’s mother and father, his siblings, his friends at work, and the books on the wall of his simple room. “In my vision,”said the old man, “the greatest treasure, more precious than all the shiny rocks and metals of the world, was there on a small cot in that room.”

The young man suddenly realized what the old man meant. In that moment, he saw that his existence, his very being, was all the treasure he would ever want or need.  A profound peace overcame him. He bowed to the wise man, and taking his leave, returned home to Istanbul where he lived out his quiet days.

Source | Catherine Ingram, Passionate Presence,
(Diamond Books, 2008) pages 20-

Moral Stories - Old Man and a Perfect Woman

Moral Stories - Old Man and a Perfect Woman

An old man remained unmarried his whole life. when he was dying, ninety years old, somebody asked him, “You have remained unmarried your whole life, but you have never said what the reason was. Now you are dying, at least quench our curiosity. If there is any secret, now you can tell it, because you are dying; you will be gone. Even if the secret is known, it can’t harm you.”

The man said, “Yes, there is a secret. It is not that I am against marriage, but I was searching for a perfect woman. I searched and searched, and my whole life slipped by.”

The inquirer asked, “But upon this big earth, so many millions of people, half of them women, couldn’t you find one perfect woman?”

A tear rolled down from the eye of the dying man. He said, “Yes, I did find one.”

The inquirer was absolutely shocked. He said, “Then what happened? Why didn’t you get married?”

And the old man said, “But the woman was searching for a perfect husband.

Moral Stories - Old man with eight hairs

An Old man has 8 hair on his head.
He went to Barber shop.
Barber in anger asked: shall i cut or count ?
.
Old man smiled and said: "Colour it!"
.
LIFE is to enjoy with whatever you have with you, keep smiling

8 Eight Amazing Facts 8

1. The most dangerous feeling is jealousy. It creates insecurity. Insecurity creates hatred, and hatred kills you softly.
.
2. A 5 minute cold shower can “shock” your body awake — The change in temperature relieves fatigue and increases mental alertness.
.
3. People are more likely to focus and pay attention when soft music is playing in the background.
.
4. The person on your mind while you're unable to sleep is usually responsible for your happiness, pain or both.
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5. Kissing causes the body to release high amounts of oxytocin, boosting your mood and lowering levels of stress.
.
6. Never say "sorry" to another driver after a car accident. It's an admission of guilt and could be used against you in court.
.
7. The smell of rain can literally relieve stress and improve your mood by over 60%!
.
8. Spending too much time doing homework can lead to a state of chronic depression.

Four Misconceptions

1. A guy met one of his classmates several years after school and he could not believe his eyes; his friend was driving one of the latest stylish Mercedes Benz cars. He returned home feeling awful and very disappointed with himself. He thought he was a failure. What he did not know was that his friend was a driver and had been sent on a mission with his boss's car!

2. Rosemary always harassed her husband for not being romantic. She accused him of not coming down to open the car door for her as her friend Jane's husband did when he dropped her off at work. What Rosemary did not know was that Jane's husband's car had a broken door that could only be opened from the outside!

3. Sampson's wife went to visit one of her long-time friends and was very disturbed to see her friend's three adorable children having fun. Her problem was that she had only one child and had struggled to conceive for the last five years. What she did not know was that one of those children who was her friend's biological child had sickle cell disease and had only one year to live; the other two are adopted!

4. Life does not have a universal measuring tool; so create your own and use it. Watching people and comparing yourself to them will not make you better but bitter. If you know the kind of load that the chameleon carries, you would not ask why he takes those careful strides. So, enjoy what you have and be grateful to God for that. Send to everyone on your list to learn from the mistakes of others!
All that glitters is not gold, live and be happy with what you have, everyone goes through one thing or the other,
Be blessed.
Quit asking Why me?
My equals are getting married
My equals have children
My equals have a good job
My equals succeed
My equals live by the sea side
My equals are buying luxury cars
My equals are high dignitaries in society
My equals build their homes
My equals are this ... !!!
My equals are that ... !!!
Yes, it's true ! But it's a shame that you literally forget ...... your equals who are already buried!
Your equals who are in a coma!
Your equals who are on kidney dialysis.
Your equals who are in a psychiatric center!
Your equals who sleep in the street!
Your equals who are orphans!
Your equals who are unemployed!
Your equals who are hungry!
Your equals who are blind, deaf, dumbs!
Your equals with disabilities!
Your equals who envy you and who are ready to make all kinds of prayers to have a situation similar to yours ...!
You may not be where you want to be! But you are obviously happier than many others !!!!!!!!!
So give thanks to God for all He does in your life!
Be yourself ! And never forget that when you look for sandals, there are those who do not even have feet !